One of the principal approaches to coal liquefaction and solvation in the past has employed reactions producing free radicals through thermal bond rupture. For many kinds of coal used this typically required temperatures above about 350.degree. C. for enough free radicals to form through thermal bond rupture of carbon-carbon bonds, carbon-oxygen bonds, carbon-nitrogen bonds and carbon-sulfur bonds, to react with other compounds or hydrogen in order to form lower molecular weight compounds than the complex materials present in the coal. In some typical prior processes the free radicals formed were stabilized and hydrogenated by hydrogen atoms through hydrogen transfer from solvent donor molecules such as 1,2,3,4-tetrahydronaphthalene or 9,10-dihydrophenanthrene, often used in the presence of minor amounts of coal solubilizing agents. After such reactions the solids are generally separated by distillation, or by solvent deashing. For such systems to be effective, it is important that the mixtures be suitable for either effective distillation or deashing without excessive coking. Another liquefaction process termed ionic liquefaction, described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,451,351, issued May 29, 1984, and application Ser. Nos. 471,731, filed March 3, 1983, now abandoned and 564,223, filed Dec. 27, 1983, now abandoned, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entity, utilizes a high proportion of highly polar solvents. In processes where even minor amounts of highly polar solvents are employed either in a liquefaction reactor or in subsequent processing, distillation problems are encountered and when alkali compounds are present, severe coking problems can arise.